Wow!!

Just noticed it's been almost a year since I updated this blog. A LOT has changed since then. I'm still living with Mom, still working for Home Instead Senior Care, and still struggling. But I've got the most supportive, wonderful friends anyone could ask for.

I've also met someone who is absolutely the love of my life. He's been through the past 175 lbs or so that I've lost, has supported me and loved me unconditionally throughout. For my birthday in July, he put the prettiest ring on my finger as a promise of his love, fidelity and committment to me. Someday, when the time is right, he plans to replace it with a wedding band. Don'tknow when that day will come, but Im looking forward to spending my life with him.

My sweetheart, Ward

Seafood Feast 2010

I'm down to a size 13/14 Juniors size now, and that's pretty amazing. My life has changed so incredibly much. I'm able to do all sorts of things I've never been able to do before. I don't mean just when I was fat, but EVER!! I can run (sorta), I can kneel down, I can play frisbee, and go walking whenever and whereever I please. I can't swim, or even float anymore. Funnily enough, my fat always helped me stay afloat, and without that fat, I simply sink like a stone!

It's a good life, and I'm the happiest I have ever been before. I'm happy with my weight, my life, my friends, and myself. Now I just need to find a good job that pays well....

It's been a LONG time!

So much has changed this past year. This blog has been the last on my list of priorities during all the changes. First, I had gastric bypass surgery on November 10, 2008. I became very sick, had all sorts of weird food issues, and didn;t have any energy.

Then my husband decided he didn't want to be married any longer. Despite all my efforts to salvage my marriage, I finally had to come to terms with his decision. You can't make someone else change their nind when they have made a decision. I didn't want to see my marriage end, but had absolutely no choice in the matter.

In April 2009, I went back to work full time as a care giver for Home Instead Senior Care. I began to meet new people and make new friends. In June, I filed for a divorce, although we were both living in the house at the time.

On July 27, 2009, the divorce papers were served to him while I was at work, and upon my homecoming that evening, it was obvious that I had to leave the home. I moved in with my Mom. I am so very blessed to have such a wonderful Mom to allow me to move in again at the age of 40.

In September, we went to court & I gave up the house rather than try to fight for it. In October, I was finally able to get my belongings out of the house.

In the meantime, I met new friends in Birmingham and began to spend a lot of my time there. They're truly a God-send. They help me see thiungs clearly & I'm learning to live my life in peace, joy & harmony.

During this process, I've had a lot of sick days due to the surgery, and as of yesterdy morning when I stepped on the scales, I've lost around 225 lbs! Right now, I'm the happiest I've ever been in my life. It feels good to be independent, to know that I can make it on my own, and to know that my life is mine to live. I don't have to answer to anyone, I don't have to pretend to be someone I'm not any longer, and I am living the best life I can live.

Here's a current photo of me.

It's been a long time....

Sorry I never got my 5 month photos posted. I will have new ones taken for my six month surgiversary in a few weeks and will make sure to post those. I don't have internet access at home at the moment, but will try to update when I can. Things are still strained at my home. Let's just say that life isn't always fun, and sometimes you wonder how much you're supposed to take. But anyway, I'm sitting at a sweet little coffee shop enjoying a cup of decaf and had a biscotti for dinner while I'm checking in on my online friends. :) Have a good one!

Four months!!

Everyone kept telling me it would get easier, but I had a hard time believing it when I was so very sick, but here we are. I'm actually able to go out to eat and enjoy myself, and had a Chik-Fil-A wrap the other day. Of course, it made three meals for me, but it was GOOD!! So just thought I'd share my 4-month photos. :)

A new milestone!!

Wow, I've been making myself eat lately because you just don't lose weight if you don't eat enough. Odd, but so very true. I had gotten into a bad habit of not eating regular meals for a few weeks and my weight loss stalled out. So my phone has a handy dandy alarm feature on it, and I set it to go off every 3 hours during the day, starting at 8am and ending at 11pm. Since then, I've been making a concerted effort to eat, focusing on protein. I've also incorporated at least one, but try for two protein drinks a day as well.

So tonight, even after eating my meals, drinking several cups of coffee and working on my protein drink, I stepped on the scales, and the number that popped up was astonishing to me. It is the lowest I've been in many, many years. It was lower than my lowest weight when I was in Weight Watchers a few years ago!! I couldn't do anything but start hollering! I am SO excited!!

I pulled out one of Florabeth's pre-WLS shirts the other day, and it fit! The arms are a little tight, but not so bad that it was uncomfortable. :) I am also wearing clothes that I haven't been able to wear in several years. I'm thinking I may have to go through my closet and purge my clothes that fit me 100 lbs ago. I've been procrastinating about that, but really need to do it so I can put other clothes in there that actually fit me.

I am so thrilled about my surgery, even when I have ukky days, it's still the best thing I've ever done!! Thanks to those of you who give me support - it helps more than you know.

*Smiles*

3 Month Update

I knew it had been a while since I've updated, but wowsa!! Didn't realize it has been THIS long! It's been 3 months since my surgery, and it's the best thing I've ever done for myself. Not that it's been easy, it's been anything BUT easy, but I am so satisfied with my decision. At this point, I'm down over 100#, and I feel like an entirely different person. Just wanted to share some photos so you can see the progress I've made in just a few short months. :)

July 2008 - at my very highest weight

November 2008 - two days before surgery

February 2009 - almost 3 months after surgery

I'm back in clothes I haven't been able to wear in years. I no longer wear socks & tennies everywhere, I actually wear stockings & cute shoes 95% of the time now. I went and got my hair cut and styled, and put makeup on whenever I go out. I feel feminine and pretty for the first time in many years, and man, is it an awesome feeling!! :)

Please leave me a comment if you've made it all the way down here. Thanks!!

Happy New Year!!

Wow, seems like just yesterday we were entering the new Millineum, and now here we are almost a decade in!! It's hard to believe that time's flying by so quickly, but then, I have lost so much time in my depression and obesity in the past few years, it's just sad. I've lost a good chunk of my life but am determined to make up for it!

I'm amazed at the way this surgery has altered not only my body, but my outlook on life. I'm a lot more active now and am discovering that there are a lot of things that I can do on my own, which I depended on others for. I'm on the road going to Mom's, out shopping, to the grocery store, visiting family, at least 4 or 5 days a week now. Before, I may not have left the house for over a week!! I'm dressed almost every day, down to my knee-high nylons and earrings, when before, I may have stayed in jammies or a gown for the whole week!

Since my husband works all the time, I've also discovered I don't have to have someone go with me, either. In the past 5 or 6 years, it's been rare for me to go anywhere alone!! I went to Hartselle twice in the past week by myself (well, I had Hannah), and even went up to Gilbert's just to visit! Haven't been up there since August, which is just sad. I have also made plans to go do my own thing this weekend, and am looking forward to hanging out with my girlfriends and spend the weekend scrapbooking!! Haven't seen them in over a year now, and it's so exciting to me. Not to mention that scrapbooking has been the last thing on my mind for many months now!!

Anyway, here's to a wonderful, prosperous, happy, healthy and love-filled 2009.

*Smiles*

Milestones

So it's been about 1.5 months now. Some interesting things have been happening to me.

First, a week or two ago, I came into the office and put my foot up in the chair and sat down. Yes, folks, for the first time in literally YEARS, I was able to sit on my foot. And it was comfortable!! Can't remember when I did that the last time.

Also, I'm having to dig into my clothes bins to find clothes to wear. The standards I've been wearing are just wayyy too baggy. That's pretty awesome! :)

Another thing is that I can drive now without a seat belt extender, and also my tummy don't touch the wheel. That's just too cool (although I like the extender because I'm short and it keeps the belt from choking me).

I have started cooking again, in an attempt to find foods that actually like me. Yeah, I've been having some tummy issues, but that's to be expected. :(

I've also started going out and about more, and have actually been shopping on my own a few times. Granted, it was the shoe store, the grocery store and Harbor Freight, but hey - it's a start, right??

I have also discovered that I can stand up and talk for quite a while without my back going into spasms. That's a VERY nice change!

My mood is usually quite positive, and I can feel myself pulling out of my shell.

We went to Kathryn's for Cookie Day on Saturday, and I didn't nibble ONE time. I did eat some cheese, but that's it. Not one tiny taste of any of the sweets and treats that were around. Yay, me!

Oh, and in my last post I mentioned I wanted to start cleaning house. Well, I can now say that my kitchen is looking WAY better. It's taking me a while, and will take a while longer, but then again, I haven't been physically able to do a lot of cleaning for the past 3 or so years, so I'm not complaining.

And finally, I'm down around 85# from my highest weight in July. :)

Anyway, just wanted to post an update.

Hope you all have a wonderfully happy Christmas. :)

One Month and Counting...

Wow, what a difference a month makes!! It's had its' ups and downs, setbacks and milestones, but here I am. A lot of trial and error, but I finally am feeling the difference and am amazed. Just looking at these photos, I am overwhelmed. I can definately tell a difference. I can feel the change in myself, both physically, emotionally and psychologically. It's awesome! I know that's a word that's thrown around so meaninglessly, however, in this case, it's a fact.

A year ago, I wouldn't have dreamed being at the point I am at. I am off all medications, including my antidepressants. The only "pills" I take are my daily vitamins, iron & B-12. That's IT!!! Wow, just a few months ago, my Dr. doubled my antidepressant meds just so I could function, and then just barely. Now, I'm happy 99% of the time. You know, sometimes a woman has to shed a few tears just because. It's a womans' prerogative, right?

Anyway, just wanted to share some photos of my ongoing journey. It's just beginning, but WOW, what a beginning it is! :)

November 8, 2 days before WLS

November 27, Thanksgiving Day

December 12 - my 1 Month Surgiversary Pic

(And no, Peter didn't tell me my hair was messed up!! LOL)

Hola, mi amigos!

Wow, it's been a while, huh? Can't say the time has flown, and it certainly hasn't been fun, but hey - life goes on, right? Don't know if anyone still reads this blog, but thought if anyone does, I should really update!

A lot has happened in the past few weeks. November 10, I had surgery, which is the best thing I've ever done for myself. I'm changing daily, and my attitude is completely different. I feel much better about life in general, and my temperament is generally sunny these days. Wow, never saw THAT coming!! :D

After years of trying it on my own, I finally made the life-changing decision to have weight loss surgery. Contrary to my mistaken beliefs, this is NOT the easy way out. It's one of the hardest, most challenging and at times frustrating thing I've ever done. My body has changed in ways I couldn't ever have dreamed. These changes aren't always fun, but are necessary.

The oddest change has been that I am no longer dependant on antidepressant medications. Matter of fact, I'm not on any meds at all anymore. Instead of literally sitting up all night, and sleeping all day, I now go to bed anywhere between 7:30pm and 11:30pm and am up no later than 7:30am EVERY morning. All my life I've been a night owl, and have dealt with insomnia for years, but these issues are thankfully no longer in the equation!! How stinkin' cool is THAT??

I'm down between 60 & 70 lbs from my highest (super depreesed state) back in the summer. I can do really cool things I have NEVER been able to do. I can now sit in my chair with my feet on the floor and my laptop on my LAP!!! That's a REALLY cool first!! My clothes are starting to fall off me, and I've got to start going through clothes that Florabeth gave me to start pulling together a new wardrobe.

I'm hoping to start working out again aftr the first of the year, as soon as my incisions fully heal. My ultimate goal is to buy a Wii and Wii Fit and start using that. It looks like a LOT of fun. I'm looking forward to going walking in my neighborhood, which is something I've never done in the 5 years we've lived here.

The weirdest thing I'm looking forward to doing is cleaning my house. Yep, you heard right. It's been in a continual state of limbo for years now, since I got so anemic a few years ago that I was virtually on death's door. Somehow I never recovered my strength and it's just been here since then. Not good.

I'm hoping to be able to eventually go back to work part time. Not sure what I want to do, but whenever this economic crisis is over, I'd love to go back to college. Maybe something to do with advocacy of some sort. Don't really want to go back to healthcare, but we'll see.

Finally, I haven't shared this news with anyone but my family and close friends, but it's made such a difference in the few short weeks that I feel it's important to share. Maybe it's not for everyone, but my objective is to become healthy, not skinny. It's a tool, a gift I've been given, and if you're leaning toward taking this step, all I can say is to research, research, research. It can truly be the best thing you've ever done for yourself.

Much love to those of you who have been my steady cheerleaders. Thank you - you totally rock! Muahhhhh!!!

At my highest weight, July 2008 - I look miserable.

Beth, Lori and I on Thanksgiving 2008. About 2 1/2 weeks after WLS. My face and neck is the most obvious change. I look and feel so much better!

Mom's Birthday Celebration

To celebrate Mom's birthday, the family gathered at Cracker Barrel on Saturday for lunch. All of her children were there, except Harvey, and all of the spouses, except for Poppi's Queen. They were missed, but we managed to have a quite enjoyable time.

After playing musical tables, we finally were all seated at one large table, with Jay & Aby, and Meg and Hannah sitting in booths right by the table. There was lots of laughter, lots of catching up was done, and games were played by the little ones.

Mom, hope you enjoyed your family celebration!! Love you!

The birthday "girl" with her Sarah Palin glasses on...

Savannah had such a good time playing this game.

The "Annah's" (Hannah-Banana and Savannah-BoBanna) playing a quick game of checkers.

Two of my most favorite people. Love these girls!!

Miss Aby strikes a pose! Work it!!

My beloved older brother, you just don't quite fit. :( Maybe you should try the adult size?

All the pretty maids (and one little gent) sitting in a row, pretty as a pocket full of posies...

Aren't they simply adorable?

John & Linny's family. First time I've gotten to take a pic of them all together in a long time.

Kathryn & David having a laugh - he might have goosed her to get that smile, I'm just not sure. Poppi was interested in something at the other end of the table.

Tim & Amy - Smile, Tim!!

Savannah and Hannah - they just love each other!

John, Linny & Ryan. Looks like Aby was trying to get out of the way, but I got her anyway!!

Oma/Aunt Beth with her girls - Lilly and Savannah

Sisters cheezin' it up!! Great pic, girls!!

Laura - I'm so glad you're hanging out with us again - we missed you!!

And finally, just because.... Peter & Beth hamming it up. This one DEFINATELY goes into my scrapbook!!!

Now after taking tons of photos, when we got out to the van to come home, I realized that there wasn't even one of me in the bunch. Guess that's what I get for being a good scrapbooker, huh? Even more sad is the fact that I was the only one who even brought their camera to the gathering! LOL

Wow - just plain WOW!

This is a commercial made by a veteran in NW Indiana. McCain didn't pay to have this made - he didn't even know it was going to be made.

MIA?

Wanna see what I've been up to?? Here ya go!

This is Punkin. We took a short day trip to Macon last Sunday and came home with her! She's Peter's great-neice, and she's visiting us for a couple/three weeks. I'm having loads of fun with her, and she's just the sweetest little thing. Took her a while to adjust - the first few days she wouldn't go to anyone but me. She's loosening up a little. It's sure an adventure having a tiny one here 24/7. I feel almost too old for this! LOL Not sure when we're taking her home, but we'll enjoy her while she's here.

My other news is that Hannah has officially started school. She started on Wednesday, and when I got her on Friday, it seemed that she'd grown 6" and gained 10lbs! Couldn't believe how "grown" she seemed. Too bad we can't keep them little forever. I'm looking forward to sharing my love of reading with her. She's already reading a little, but with all the books we've got around here, she could read for a year and not read them all.

Anyway, my sweetheart should be home any minute, and I've got a 6mo baby boy arriving at 7am to babysit, so I gotta head to bed. Yeah, sleep's WAY overrated! NOT!!

*Smiles*

Congratulations!!

So happy for you two. :)

For all the details, go here

Looking to the future

As much as I hate change, it's completely inevitable in life. No matter how much we'd like to have things remain just as they are, it's not going to happen. This week has brought quite a bit of change to our lives.

First, I found out that Hannah's starting school next month. That means I've done my job too well. She just turned 5 and is already reading and doing addition, so it's time for her to go into a setting where she can shine. As hard as it is to not have her here every day, Meg's promised that we'll still be in her life, and I'm to have her when school's out. I don't think I could handle not seeing her again. Guess it really helps that Meg's my sister by choice and in heart. Love that woman - it's almost like we were separated at birth or something. Scary thought, huh?

I'm starting a new phase in my life as of tomorrow. It's going to be hard, but I absolutely know the end results will be worth all the frustration and discomfort. Thanks to one of my bestest friends for helping me get my head wrapped around it and start thinking in the positive instead of dealing with the "never's". You rock, girlie, and I may well be calling on you to vent. Hope you don't mind.

Also found out that something wonderful happened this morning. I'm not going to say more than that, because it's not my news to share, but I just want the parties involved to know how happy I am for them, and I love you guys!!

And amidst all that, something cool was going on at home this week. We did a little home improvement, and now the bulk of my books are in one place. We were able to add a little bit of storage to the kitchen, which was BADLY needed! I was able to sell some stuff and have more to list in the next few days. It feels liberating to shed the CHAOS and get back to life as it should be.

So that's about it. Gonna go find some trouble to get into now....

*Smiles*

Happy Friday!

Glitter Graphics

Too funny!

This is hilarious!! Turn your sound up, sit back and enjoy the show! :)

Eliminating the CHAOS!

The past couple of weeks have been a busy time for all of us. Beth had a b'day on July 5, Jonathan had a b'day on the 9th, mine was on the 14th, and William's was yesterday. So we've been doing dinners, getting together with family and in general, just having a great time.

Peter has also installed 8' shelving in the small alcove in our living room, and we've moved all our books from several bookcases in the house to the new shelves. Then we've been rearranging furniture, downsizing and purging in general. I am determined to be able to get my house looking like it used to before my back/hip problems rendered me unable to do much of anything. I'm looking forward to being able to have visitors drop by unannounced without sending me into a panic! It will get there, it's just going to take time.

We found the local recycling place and dropped off a bunch of glass this morning, since they won't pick it up when we put it into the bins. For those of you who are local, the place is off Triana, behind the animal shelter, all the way at the end of the road. There's a lot of dumpsters out there for various things. You can drop off cardboard, paper, cans, plastic, and brown, green and clear glass. You can just pull up, open your trunk and put it right in the dumpsters. They're available 24 hours a day, and each dumpster is marked well for the contents. We're really trying to up our "green" lifestyle around here. Anything we can do to make the world a little bit better to live in is a good thing!! :)

Peter and I went to Poppi & The Queen's house this morning, just planning to p/u a piece of furniture and ended up having a fantabulous meal and a great time with them. We finally left around 1:30 or so, since Peter and Poppi both had to be on their jobs @ 3pm. When we stopped at the foot of the mountain to fuel up the van, the wind kicked in high gear. Thanks to the wonder of the internet, I was able to pull up a live radar on my cell phone and saw that it was gonna get pretty ukky really soon. We only made it maybe a mile or so down the road when the sky started weeping great big drops. We made it home right before it really broke loose, which I was super grateful for! Oh, and Poppi & The Queen - that squash is on my stove, just begging me to cook it it!! You guys grow 'em BIG on the mountain!!

Mom was here when we got home and she and I spent a nice hour doing "crafty" stuff and then she left for home. Then I sat in my chair and went right off to sleep! After Peter got home tonight, we continued our purge. I've got emails out to several people to please come p/u stuff I've had for them for quite some time, as well as emails out to the local trader & recycle groups to offer items we simply don't need/love any longer. Hopefully the "purge" pile by our front door will dwindle VERY soon! I want my space back! :)

I also got a couple of calls this evening, and I ask those of you who can, to please pray that if it's meant to be, things will work out. Is that completely vague enough??

Anywho, since Poppi said I needed to update, I have. Now, seeing as how HIS last update was on June 9th, let's all ask him to update! Maybe if enough of us ask him super nicely, he'll let us in on what's happening! LOL

*Smiles*

Finding my mojo & jammin' to the oldies

So it's been a while since I posted, but I've been sorta kinda under the weather emotionally and mentally for a few months now. After getting some really encouraging news on Monday, however, I feel refreshed, excited and am looking forward to the future in a whole new way!!

I've actually become inspired to get back to my scrapbooking hobby after a few months of totally vegging out and ignoring all the photos and memories that need to be put on paper. Yesterday, I finished my 2006 Holidays pages, putting stickers and fun stuff on the pages, and got them all into an album. I also finally unpacked all the pages I'd finished at the last crop (was that in March or April?) and got those into an album. Then I finished the two layouts I've had hanging out since last fall that needed titles and got those into an album. I sorted all the stuff on my desk and got them into the proper containers and got those labelled and put away. Yay! Now my desk is (almost) free and clear to play with my paperstickyfoldystuff. :)

I've also been getting into older music, particularly Queen & Otis Redding lately. I watched a documentary on Otis Redding's life over the weekend, and it was great. I think I'm going to go through all the music on my hard drive and get all his music onto my mp3 player. He died way too young and he just was a wonderful talent. Peter bought Queen Greatest Hits 1 & 2 cd set for my birthday, and I'm having fun listening to their music. Man, if today's "musicians" and "singers" performed like those older acts, the whole landscape of music today would be vastly different. They put everything they had into performing the best of their abilities, instead of lipsynching and putting all their emphasis on dancing. Can you say yuck?

Anyway, enough of that. I'm going to share a few photos of this past weekend. My birthday was on Monday, and the family went to Logan's on Sunday to celebrate. We had a fun waiter and he kept things lively for us all! Needless to say, he got a really good tip from our table!! Thanks to all of you who made it for dinner, and those of you who didn't - we missed you!! And yeah, I know.... ONE MORE YEAR!! And you can believe that cup's gonna be prominantly displayed in my home! :)

And after this picture, she tried to "schleck" him! LOL Funny Beth - she was definately feeling her oats!

Don't know what Lori was doing, but anyway, here's Emy in front, Lori & Kathryn bringing up the rear. All four of Mom's daughters were there!

Anthony means business when it comes to hot wings!! :D

Mom and I! Thanks for giving me life, Momma!!

Beth gave me this huge card and when I opened it, it started singing to me! The Dancing Hamsters!! Couldn't help it - just had to laugh!! Thanks, Sis!!

57 States and One To Go....

What turnip truck did this joker fall off of????

Little Johnny & Obama

Stolen!! :D

A teacher in Elmira, New York asked her 6th grade class how manyvof them were Obama fans. Not really knowing what an Obama fan is, but wanting to be liked by the teacher, all the kids raised their hands except for Little Johnny.

The teacher asked Little Johnny why he has decided to be different...again. Little Johnny said, 'Because I'm not an Obama fan.'

The teacher asked, 'Why aren't you an Obama fan?'

Johnny said, 'Because I'm a Republican.' The teacher asked him why he's a Republican.

Little Johnny answered, 'Well, my Mom's a Republican and my Dad's a Republican, so I'm a Republican.'

Annoyed by this answer, the teacher asked, 'If your mom was a moron and your dad was an idiot, what would that make you?'

With a big smile, Little Johnny replied, *'That would make me an Obama fan.'*

Coolness

If you'd like to see something really cool, click here. I'm totally impressed. Just wonder how many people it took to do it!

Just want to say

That I absolutely LOVE my husband!! I'm more in love with him now than I ever have been. No, he hasn't done anything profound or super special. He's just himself and I couldn't ask for a better life partner. :)

A new day, a new name

A couple of years ago when Hannah started hanging out with me every day, she christened me "Nene", pronounced "Nee-nee". Well, the Princess hasn't seemed to get the hang of pronunciation, I have been renamed by her to "Gigi". How funny is that?? She's such a firecracker. She definately keeps me on my toes, but I'm enjoying having her stay with us, other than the 5:30am calls for "milk" that wake me from a sound sleep.

Update!

Life's just a tiny bit different around here. We got to spend a bit of time with the Princess. She's loads of fun!

Hannah giving "loves" to the Princess.

Fresh from the shower - aren't they adorable? Getting ready to go visit Poppi & his Queen.

William graduated high school today. He's grown so much and come so far. We're so very proud of him. Can't wait to see how far he goes now.

Emy & the Princess having fun together. We've been spending a lot more time together lately, which is pretty awesome.

Tonight Lori, Mom, Flora & I are at a crop. It's at a store that's closing very soon, and we're going to miss all the ladies there. I'm not exactly scrapping, but have uploaded a ton of photos and edited them. Placed a large order, so should be scrapping again soon. :)

A Funny For You

Hug your honey... it's a specially romantic video!! Enjoy!

Something different

It seems like we always eat the same old type of foods, so today I tried something different. I made a riff on Guy Fieri's Stuffed Chicken with sun dried tomatoes and feta.

I used whole wheat couscous, sun dried tomatoes in oil, roasted garlic, chicken broth and shredded chicken. I put 1 Tbsp of oil from the tomatoes into a 5qt pot, then added my garlic once it was hot. I then added my tomatoes (chopped) and let them saute for about 30 seconds. Then I added 2 cups chicken broth and brought it to a boil. I then added salt to taste, dumped in my couscous, stirred it up, dumped my chicken on top, put the lid on the pot and removed it from the heat. All I had to do then was let it sit for 5 minutes. When the 5 minutes was up, I fluffed it up with a fork, mixing in the chicken, and added 8oz of crumbled feta cheese and mixed it in. I served it with frozen mixed veggies, nuked in a steamer for 7 minutes, then mixed in 1 Tbsp of butter. The whole meal was complete in less than 10 minutes, and it was SO good.

Peter and Hannah snarfed it up and I've got just enough left for my dinner tomorrow night. It's a definate do-over. We mixed our veggies in with the couscous, and that was even better.

If you've never tried couscous, it's simply a VERY tiny pasta that resembles a grain. It's super yummy and if you go to FoodTv, you can get all sorts of both savory and sweet recipes. It's going to be a staple in our pantry from now on.

*smiles*

It's the 13th, Baby!

Today is a very special day for Peter and I. It's our 13th's anniversary. We've been through some hard times, and there were a couple of times we thought we weren't going to make it, but here we are. Through the years our relationship has become stronger and the love deeper than we ever thought it would. I'm thrilled to be celebrating this special day with my best friend, my sweetheart and my one true love.

He had a dozen roses delivered to me this morning. It was a total surprise, although I knew he had something up his sleeve! Here's a photo of them - aren't they GORGEOUS??

Today is also Jeni & Jef's anniversary! It's pretty cool to share this date with such a special couple! Hope you guys have fun on your anniversary getaway!!

*smiles*

I am green

GREEN

You are a very calm and contemplative person. Others are drawn to your peaceful, nurturing nature.

Find out your color at QuizMeme.com!

Stress-less Domestication

There's a lot to be said for a load of stress being removed from our lives. Overnight, I've gone from panic attacks, sleeplessness and lethargy to having a chilled out, productive day after a good night's sleep and an early (for me) morning.

See, my honey's had a position that's been causing a TON of stress for me. He deals with things a lot differently, but I had a chance to hear first hand (LOVE speakerphone!!) what he has to deal with the other day. This was Sunday morning, before he left for church. Let me tell you, it was AWFUL. It was all I could do to keep my mouth shut and not tell the person on the other end how unreasonable and disrespectful she was being. It even came down to her threatening his job, which was super stressful for me.

So yesterday he found out about a position that's open on the corner, just a minute's walk from our house and I convinced him to put his transfer request in. The supervisor there called him to make sure he wants the position and he said he did. Yippee!!! Then he had to call the unreasonable one and let her know he's transferring. Her reply: She's thankful he's leaving, and now maybe she can get someone in there who will do what she wants them to.

Now my honey's been doing HER job since September so she won't have to make a 30 minute drive down here each day. He hasn't been getting paid for it, but has been doing it out of the goodness of his heart. How dare she?? Sad thing is, he knows more about what's going on around the job site than she does. Sad, sad, sad. Too bad I didn't think to tape the conversations to turn into HR. But anyway....

Having said all that, it's amazing how much stress was taken from me just by knowing that in two weeks, my sweetie will be literally across the street instead of working two jobs from dawn until midnight. He's going to be working a split shift, which means he'll get to be home during the days, which also means I'll get to cook our lunches again!! Yipppppeeeee!!

So we've been cleaning house - Hannah's got OCD, and is an awesome little helper. Then I loosened up enough to give her a frozen fruit bar (Love Schwan's!) and sent her out back to play by herself for most of the afternoon while I browsed cookbooks and kept an eye on her. I even gave her a water pistol (I hate guns and don't think children should play with them, JMHO) so she could shoot the trees, as well as some candy! Wow, that's just NOT me at all!!

She helped me cook dinner, which is normally whatever we can throw together quickly, like sandwiches or whatever. We made an Italian meatloaf with bacon, roasted veggies with cracked black pepper and garlic, and steamed new potatoes with lemon butter and fresh parsley from our herb planter out front. Wow, I feel so stinkin' domesticated.

Scary, huh??

Nah, just back to feeling footloose and fancy free.

*Smiles*